The Sensual Art of Writing Yoga

Writing, like yoga, is a form of magic! A writer puts words on the page, and, done skilfully, the words will elicit an image in the reader's mind. As readers we are more likely to be able to picture what the writer is trying to convey if the writer appeals to our five senses. The five senses are touch, taste, smell, sound, and sight.
Touch is the smooth feel of velvet, or a handful of sun-soaked soil. Taste is the flavour of melting chocolate on the tongue. Smell is the scent of sandalwood. Sound is the hum of traffic outside as you lie down to relax in Savasana. Sight is what you see when you look at a rainbow. For our writing to come alive we must use all of our five senses, and furnish the reader with sensual, concrete details, if we are to open a window that allows them to peer into our world.
            Writing sensually and evocatively takes practice. The Sensual Writing exercise, below, will get you into the habit of observing and recording the world around you with all your five senses. It will help to improve your writing, whilst at the same time lifting your mood by taking you out of your head, and into your body, bringing you firmly back to the present moment, which, as the Buddhists remind us, is a wonderful moment.
            Students, on my online yoga writers’ course, were amazed at how transformative this exercise can be. They found that when they did the exercise, even in challenging circumstances, it changed their perspective, jolting them out of autopilot and into a mindful, appreciative state.
Exercise: Sensual Writing
This exercise can be done in a cafe, in the park, on a train, at home, in your garden, at the start or end of your yoga class, or anywhere else you choose...
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